1. Technical Field
The present invention generally relates to a viscous, shelf stable foam comprising foam particles and a viscous aerated foods incorporating the foam particles.
2. Description of the Related Art
A foam is a collection of gas bubbles trapped in a solid or liquid product. In general, foam stability—the ability of the gas bubbles that make up the foam to remain polydisperse in the foaming medium—varies directly with the viscosity of the bulk phase foaming medium. In other words, a foam created in a low viscosity liquid will be highly unstable and only last for a few seconds, while a foam created in a solid material can last for years.
Some food products contain foams. FIG. 1 depicts the relationship of viscosity to foam stability for foods containing foams that are known in the art. The bubbles that form in a glass of wine, for example, would be found in region 10 of FIG. 1, and last only a few seconds. Beer or cappuccino foam would also be found in region 10 of FIG. 1, and can last for minutes. A foam created by beating an egg white or a whipping cream would be found in region 20 of FIG. 1, and can last for hours. The bubbles created by yeast can give bread a foam quality that can last for days or weeks, which is depicted by region 30 of FIG. 1. Meringues, crackers, and other non-viscous foods which can incorporate foams that are beaten stiff and/or cooked, which fall into region 40 of FIG. 1, and that can last for years.
At present, a viscous, stable foam is unknown in the art. It would, therefore, be an advancement in the art to provide a viscous foam that is stable at ambient conditions, and which can be used to create viscous, aerated food products, which fall into region 50 of FIG. 1, heretofore unknown in the art.